Station Eight.       

~ out of town ~

Ryeowook let out another deep sigh for the nth time that day. He had been nervously thinking about this day ever since the night of Kyuhyun’s birthday. His wish was only a simple yet thoughtful request he could grant his best friend so even though he didn’t know whether he could get another one day leave at work, he agreed.

“Actually, I was thinking about this for awhile now... my wish is...” Kyuhyun caught his gaze and gave those puppy eyes he swore he can never say no to. “My wish is to go home and visit mom and dad...”

Ryeowook stared at him blankly. That was nice of him, thinking about visiting his parents whom he did not see for months, but what does that wish makes it special? He can do that whenever his time permits him to.

“I wanna go home with you...”

Well, that caught Ryeowook off guard. “Me? Why me?”

“As my closest friend for the longest time during our stay here of course they still remember you... my mom in particular, she always asks about you. Now that Ahra was there I’m sure she filled in mom with gossips already.”

“You don’t call them often?” Ryeowook observed.

“I do but not to talk about stuffs like that. Just a simple ‘hello’, ‘have eaten your meals?’, ‘do you still sleep?’ that’s all that we talk about,”

Ryeowook nodded thinking how lonely life can be living alone and away from his parents. Work is already toxic and what more when you arrive in a boring home only to eat and rest and repeat the same cycle the following day. He wondered how Kyuhyun survives that.

“Sooo... are coming or what?” Kyuhyun asked again before the topic drifts away to another. “Will you grant my wish this year?”

And that was the reason why today Ryeowook was sitting inside the train with a grinning Kyuhyun beside him. He didn’t know how his friend managed to get permission for him to be absent at work but he doesn’t want to know about it anymore. Better to enjoy another day off for him and relax his mind and body from work. But it didn’t excuse him from getting nervous though...

“You look like you’re going to see your in-laws,” Kyuhyun earning him a smack on the stomach. “Yah you should be thankful or you could have been working your off at hospital today,”

“I’m grateful, can’t you see it on my face,” he flashed an obvious fake smile before laughing hard at the other’s face. “You started the joke and then you don’t get mine! It’s unfair,”

“But really... you look like you’re gonna throw up awhile ago. Don’t you want to see my parents?”

“Of course I want to see them Kyu. I’m just...you know... nervous,” he looked down on his lap clutch the hem of his shirt. “I haven’t seen them in years. I don’t know what to say to them...”

“Anyway, I should have invited you at home to meet mom and dad to and let you experience what I am feeling right now,” he added.

“I’ve already met them. It’s been months since I’m back, of course I will pass by to hi at them,” Kyuhyun said nonchalantly. He took out his phone from his pocket and began texting him telling her that they will arrive probably within thirty minutes.

“You did?”

Kyuhyun nodded still holding his phone.

“I’m upset that mom didn’t mention about it to me,”

“You shouldn’t be worried about making conversations because I’m sure mom has a lot of stories to tell you. Sometimes I’m worried if she likes you better than me as a son because once I almost burned her kitchen while you can spend the whole day cooking with her.”

Ryeowook giggled at his friend’s unfortunate fate in the kitchen. It must be true that no one can have everything in the world. Kyuhyun might have the brain and the looks but he totally needs someone to complement his flaws.

“You must marry someone who cooks,” he suggested.

“A chef?”

“Not really... but someone can spend the rest of her life cooking for you. Assuming that you will never learn in the kitchen,” still Ryeowook tried not to laugh so hard at him. However Kyuhyun was not at all offended. Instead, he finds it amusing that Ryeowook could suggest a person for him to marry.

“Why should I when you can cook for me though,” 

“Excuse meee?? I only cooked for you because it was your birthday,”

“But you always share with me your homemade food when we were younger,”

“That was in the past...”